Kia Super League Finals Day to be held at The 1st Central County Ground

The 1st Central County Ground, Hove, will play host to the Kia Super League Finals Day on Friday September 1 2017, the ECB have announced.

After the huge success of the first Kia Super League last summer, which saw over 15,000 fans enjoy watching the 15 group stage T20 matches, the second season will follow the same format, with the six teams taking part in a round-robin competition over a 17 day period and across 13 different venues from Thursday 10th August to Saturday 26th August 2017. The competition will once again climax in a showcase finals day involving the top three teams at Hove.

In a further boost to the Kia Super League, this season’s tournament will be broadcast live on television and radio. Southern Vipers will get their Kia Super League title defence underway live on Sky Sports and BBC Radio this summer when they take on Western Storm at the Ageas Bowl on Thursday 10th August in the opening clash of the competition.

The re-match of last summer’s inaugural Kia Super League final will precede Hampshire’s NatWest T20 Blast encounter against Glamorgan, and is one of six domestic “double-headers” between the two tournaments, which will all be televised live on Sky Sports, with ball-by-ball commentary also available on BBC Radio.

In addition to the six double-header group stage matches, Sky Sports will provide live television coverage of finals day, with BBC Radio covering every round of matches, alongside finals day at The 1st Central County Ground.

The Vipers will also play a group game in Sussex this season, when they take on Yorkshire Diamonds at Arundel Castle on Saturday 26th August.

Sussex’s Chief Executive Rob Andrew said, “We are delighted to welcome the Kia Super League Finals Day to The 1st Central County Ground in September. This is the flagship day in domestic women’s cricket and following the success of the inaugural campaign last year, the competition is going from strength to strength.

“The boost of increased media coverage throughout the tournament, including the Finals Day at Hove, is great for the competition and we look forward to hosting what is set to be a fantastic day. It is also further demonstrates Sussex’s commitment to women’s cricket and we are hoping for a big turnout from across the south east and beyond.”

ECB Director of England Women’s Cricket, Clare Connor, commented, “At the end of last summer I said that I was immensely proud of what the Kia Super League had achieved during its first season, but equally I stressed that there was still considerable growth potential for the competition.

“Moving into year two I am therefore delighted to announce the next historic moment in the development of the domestic women’s game in this country, with six Kia Super League group stage matches plus finals day due to be televised live on Sky Sports, alongside enhanced levels of broadcast coverage throughout the competition on BBC Radio.

“In total, we will be taking the Kia Super League to 14 different venues during the season, which presents a fantastic platform to spread the game to new audiences across the country. Alongside the ICC Women’s World Cup in June and July, we have a brilliant opportunity to showcase the sport this summer, grow our participation base and inspire more fans than ever before to watch and get involved with women’s cricket.”